Posts con el tag ‘innovation’

During the recent Christmas holidays, I re-read an article by Professor Francisco Longo on the impact of globalisation and the digital revolution in schools and universities. For those dedicated to education and the management of its institutions, this article is a brilliant contribution to understanding the challenges we face today. We have a wonderful opportunity to help shape the educational experience of future generations of students.

I hope that education will soon reach everyone in every corner of the planet – regardless of the place or circumstances in which they were born. Technology and communication will be key elements. But the challenge goes further: our schools and universities must develop new models of learning for people facing important tasks.

Once again, ESADE students’ entrepreneurial dexterity and drive are on display. This time, the ESADE BBA alumni Carles Royo and Clara Sellarès have given concrete form to their final-year project. Conceived in ESADE classrooms, Ruralmind is a rural tourism and adventure activities website that is swiftly emerging as a mountain tourism industry leader.

Starting a business is not easy. Getting a business idea off the ground requires hard work and perseverance. The attitude that would-be entrepreneurs bring to this challenge is vital to allowing them to achieve their goals. Read the rest of this entry »

Entrepreneurship knows no limits and no borders. Conceiving ideas and creating industry-changing, custom-shaping businesses is within anyone’s reach. At ESADE, we are dedicated to promoting this vision of the world. Our students learn to assume risks in order to develop new initiatives and meet existing needs.

I am therefore very proud that the ESADE Entrepreneurship Institute (EEI) recently teamed up with the Prevent Foundation, to create an academic project called Aula de Emprendedores: Aprende y Emprende. This unique programme provides rigorous training and mentoring to entrepreneurs with disabilities who want to create a company or accelerate a recently created business initiative.

ESADE’s founders were pioneers in the education of European business leaders, and their tireless spirit remains an integral part of our institution. We are a business school: entrepreneurship is in our genes.

As a student and later as a faculty member, I have experienced ESADE’s commitment to creating spaces that allow innovation, economic growth and social debate to converge into change-generating ideas. Our current goal of strengthening ESADE’s presence in Latin America is therefore a natural path for us.

Each social entrepreneur is different, but they all share one thing in common: the desire to drive social change.

The entrepreneurs accompanying us in the photo have launched ten of the most promising social start-ups in Spain. We met with them recently as part of the Momentum Project’s Social Investment Day, an event organised by BBVA, ESADE and PwC to help these entrepreneurs find potential investors. Read the rest of this entry »

I’ve always admired entrepreneurs – their ability to step out of their comfort zone and take risks, their creativity, their capacity to overcome adversity, their visionary attitude. They say that true entrepreneurs never quit, and that they always find the strength to keep going even when times get really tough. Stories of entrepreneurs are among my favourite, because behind a great idea there’s always a profound story to tell.

The other day I came across a few of these stories while reading the newspaper. It was an interesting article about new technology-based start-ups in Barcelona, and how the city is becoming a pole of attraction for entrepreneurs in the IT sector. Among these new start-ups was King, a social games platform that has settled in Barcelona with an initial investment of 2 million euros, and Kantox, an online currency exchange platform that saves users paying bank charges. Kantox was co-founded by Antonio Rami, a former ESADE student (Lic&MBA 09). His visionary business idea, which has just raised one million euros in funding, is a clear demonstration that successful innovation can come from anywhere in the world, and that Barcelona is a good platform to push ideas forward.

Another featured story was an innovative taxi finder app business, which has just closed an investment round of 3 million euros. Perhaps the most interesting part of this start-up is how it was created, thanks to the push given in the business accelerator Inspirit Labs, founded by entrepreneur Didac Lee. His high-tech accelerator has fuelled many new technology-based start-ups in Barcelona – Spamina, Zyncro, Conzentra and The eTailers among others – which are expanding through major venture capital investments.

Did you know that every year, more than a thousand new start-ups are created in the city of Barcelona through the City Council’s business incubator Barcelona Activa? Today, Barcelona is home to some of the most well-established start-ups with a worldwide presence. The city is becoming a cradle for digital entrepreneurs, and I believe that business schools, in one way or another, are contributing to this growth and emergence of new start-ups.

If I had to convey a message to an entrepreneur who was just starting out, this is what I would tell him or her: Find the courage to pursue your dreams, believe in yourself when you go through hard times, and don’t give up. The future is full of possibilities.

Yesterday, more than 1,000 ESADE graduates came together for the 6th ESADE Alumni Annual Conference. Madrid’s Palacio de Congresos was abuzz with excitement and positive energy: excitement at reuniting with old friends and classmates, and positive energy because our guest speakers – Spanish Minister of Economy Luis de Guindos, Telefónica CEO José M. Álvarez-Pallete, and ESADE Alumni President Miguel Trias – inspired us to look ahead to a future rich with opportunity that holds a place for every one of us.

Time and again, two themes emerged: innovation and entrepreneurship, two pillars essential to stimulating the national economy and repositioning Spain’s companies and professionals on the world stage. But there’s more to it than that. As José M. Álvarez-Pallete noted in his talk on initiatives such as Wayra, we need innovation and entrepreneurship to drive transformation and growth.

Many of our alumni take the leap and commit to an idea – their idea. To be sure, launching a business means taking risks and investing time and money. But with hard work, enthusiasm and motivation, these professionals have defied their main competitor – themselves – and made their dreams come true. I’m talking about Manel Adell of Desigual, Antonio Rami of Kantox, Andrea Lisbona of Touchland, María Alegre of Chartboost, Jacinto Roca of Wuaki.tv, Pere Costa of Bicentury, Miquel Àngel Bonachera of AB-BIOTICS, José Manuel Villanueva of Privalia… and many others.

In fact, yesterday’s participants included José Manuel Villanueva’s business partner, Lucas Carné, as well as Miguel Silva, who co-founded Blusens. ESADE’s Javier Santiso, in a vibrant talk entitled “Spain 3.0”, discussed his origins, challenges and successes. I came away with two insights about entrepreneurs: their passion and their ability to say NO to fear.

Like these entrepreneurs, many of you have found support at ESADE thanks to our faculty, experts and professionals, as well as initiatives such as the ESADE Entrepreneurship Institute, ESADECREAPOLIS, EGarage and our networking events.

Did you know that ESADE BAN has raised more than 20 million euros to finance Start Up Spain? Through this excellent initiative and others, Javier and his team have showcased Spain’s entrepreneurial capacity. I am so grateful for their steadfast commitment to Spanish entrepreneurs and the innovation economy.

Businesspeople and entrepreneurs: we are dedicated to people like you. At ESADE, you can share and develop ideas and embark on new journeys. At this hub of education and knowledge, you can acquire skills for today’s globalised world and learn to shape your own future.

A few days ago, I received an email from the founder of Fahrenheit Risk International, Sergi Corbatera. He had attended my Entrepreneurship classes two years ago, and went on to found the company after graduating from ESADE (Lic&MDE, 2011). His business idea is interesting. The company offers tools for businesses to manage the financial risks derived from climate change.

Apparently, climate change can have an impact on businesses, and more than one would think. Around 80% of the world’s global economic activity depends on the weather, which means that any sector of the economy can be affected by climate change, in one way or another. Sergi’s idea is interesting for many businesses, and it covers a market niche in Europe. The company is growing quickly, and it has recently signed an alliance with Weather Trends International to offer European companies a system to forecast the weather a year in advance with 80% accuracy.

Sergi is a good example of an entrepreneur who embraces innovation. We wish him every success in his future endeavours.

History tells us that garages have long been cradles of great business ideas. Apple, Hewlett-Packard, Disney, Amazon and Google… All of them can trace their origins to a garage. On 14th June, ESADE officially inaugurated the EGarage, a new space we have created to help our entrepreneurs bring their ideas to life. The opening ceremony was attended by José Manuel Villanueva, co-founder of Privalia, and Manel Adell, CEO of Desigual – both graduates of ESADE. The two entrepreneurs shared with us their adventures at the helm of their companies and their views on the challenges and advantages of entrepreneurship, and both insisted that persistence overcomes many barriers. This is so true, and it’s a message that good entrepreneurs should always remember when obstacles cross their path.

The EGarage was inspired by the Palo Alto garage where, in the 1930s, Bill Hewlett and David Packard founded what is now one of the largest computer companies in the world. Our space, located in the ESADECREAPOLIS innovation park, is designed to foster our students’ entrepreneurial spirit and to prepare them to create businesses and develop new initiatives. The facilities include work and conference rooms where students, entrepreneurs and investors can work together to develop ideas and launch new projects.

One of ESADE’s objectives as an institution is to develop our students’ entrepreneurial skills, enabling them to create strong, global companies. I am certain that very good ideas will come out of the EGarage. It’s just a matter of time.